Shelf support



Milch 1958 A. G. JANOS ETAL SHELF SUPPORT Filed April 17, 1953 46Inventor. Alfred GJanos, Francls M. llogg,

Tf'fieir Attorney.

United States Patent SHELF SUPPORT Alfred G. Janos, Erie, Pa., andFrancis M. Hogg, Findley Lake, N. Y., assignors to General Electric(Iornpany, a corporation of New York Application April 17, 1953, SerialNo. 349,364

2 Claims. (Cl. 248-239) This invention relates to shelf supports andmore particularly to arrangements for removably mounting shelf supports.

Shelf supports are provided for many purposes. For example, shelfsupports are widely used in connection with household refrigerators formounting the shelves in a desired position. In order to facilitate themass production of refrigerators and the like it is desirable that suchshelf supports be easily assembled and, of course, that they be firmlyheld in position during use of the refrigerator. Occasionally it may bedesirable to remove the shelf supports, for example, should the supportsbecome damaged and need replacement or should it be desired to shift theshelf support to a different location for changing the position of theshelf. in accordance with this invention, a shelf support is providedwhich is easily assembled, which is firmly held in the assembledposition, and which is easily removable when desired.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide an improvedshelf support and mounting arrangement therefor.

It is another object of this invention to provide an easily assembledand removable shelf support including an improved arrangement forinsuring firm retention of the support when assembled.

Further objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent asthe following description proceeds and the features of novelty whichcharacterize this invention will be pointed out with particularity inthe claims annexed to and forming part of this specification.

In carrying out the objects of this invention, a shelf support isprovided which includes a shoulder, a noncircular central boss, and oneor more spaced lips for engaging opposite sides of a wall upon which thesupport is mounted. These lips are constructed to provide taperingpassages between the shoulder and the lips so that a progressivelytighter engagement with the Wall is achieved as the support is rotated.In addition, the support includes cleavable webs positioned in thesepassages and adapted to be severed by the wall at the end of therotational movement of the support during assembly.

For a better understanding of this invention, reference may be had tothe accompanying drawing in which:

Fig. 1 is an elevation view, partly broken away, showing one embodimentof the shelf support of this invention. Fig. 2 is an exploded viewshowing elements employed in the assembly of the support.

Fig. 3 is a sectional plan View taken along'the line 33 of Fig. 1 andlooking in the direction of the arrows.

Fig. 4 is a view, partly broken away, taken generally along the line 4-4in Fig. 1 and looking in'the direction of the arrows, this view beingtaken when the support has been inserted within the opening in the Wallbutprior to rotation of the support to its assembled position.

Fig. 5 is a view cor esponding to Fig. 4 showing the support in aposition just. prior to completion of the rotation thereof for assembly.

Patented Mar. 11, 1958 Fig. 6 is a sectional elevation view taken alongthe line 6-6 in Fig; 4 andlooking in the direction of the arrows, thesupport being. shown in its position. prior to rotation for assemblythereof.

Fig. 7 is a view corresponding to Fig. 6 and showing the support in. itsposition after rotation for assembly has been completed.

Fig. 8 is an end view partially in section of a modification of myinvention.

Referring to Fig. 1, there is shown a portion of a refrigerator cabinet,or the like, including an inner wall or liner 1 defining a food storagecompartment 2. A shelf 3 is provided for holding food within the foodstorage compartment. In order to mount the shelf, a plurality of shelfsupports, one of which is shown at 4, are employed. The shelf support 4is adapted to be received within an opening 5 in the wall 1 and to berotated to an assembled position in firm engagement with the oppositefaces of the wall 1. As shown in Fig. 2, the opening '5 in the wall 1includes a central generally circular portion 6 and two generallydiametrically opposite, slightly offset, laterally extending recesses 7.

The support 4 includes a shoulder 8 adapted to engage the inner surface9 of the wall 1 and a projection to adapted to be received within theopening 5 in the wall 1. This projection 10 includes a central boss 11which is slightly non-circular or oval in crosssection and twodiametrically opposite, slightly offset lips 17; extending radially fromthe central boss 11 and spaced from the shoulder 8. The central bossmay, if desired, be made circular in cross-section but preferably thisboss is, as mentioned above, slightly non-circular with the largerdimension thereof generally in line with the lips 12. Such across-section makes it possible to secure an additional wedging forcewithin the circular portions 6 of the opening 5 as the support isrotated by approximately during assembly.

The support further includes a stud 13 on which the shelf 3 is adaptedto be received. In order to facilitate assembly of the support the stud13 is provided with a plurality of flutes 14. A tool is is provided tofacilitate rotation of the stud into tight engagement with the wall 1.This tool 15 includes a shaft 16, a handle 17, and a hollowstud-engaging portion '13. The interior of the portion 18 is fluted, asindicated at 19, to provide a surface adapted to engage the flutes 14 ofthe stud for effecting rotation of the stud.

As mentioned previously, the shelf support is adapted to be inserted inthe opening 5 in the wall 1 and then rotated at approximately 90 to itsfinal assembled position. It is thus initially assembled within theopening with the lips 12 aligned with the recesses 7, as illustrated inFigs. 4 and 6,- and is then rotated in a counterclockwise direction asviewed in Figs. 4 and 5, to a position in which the 'lips 12 extendalong a line transverse of a line through the recesses 7 and engage thesurface 2d of the Wall 1. This final position is just beyond theposition shown in Fig. 5 andcorresponds to the position shown in Figs.1, 3 and 7.

The shelf support of this invention includes several features ofconstruction which facilitate firm engagement of the shelf support withthe wall 1 at the completionof the aforementioned 90 rotation. First,the central boss 11 is, as mentionedgpreviously, made slightlynon-circular in cross-section with the longer dimension thereofextending along a line connecting recesses 7 during initial assembly andwith this longer dimension extending transverselyof this line when thestud is in its final assembled .position. Since the central portion 6 ofthe opening 5 of the central boss 11 transversely of the opening 5effects a firm engagement of the central boss 11 with the edges of theopening 5, these edges preferably cutting slightly into the surface ofthe boss or at least very tightly engaging the boss. In the particularform illustrated the edges of the opening actually bite slightly intothe surface of the boss. Comparing Figs. 4 and 5, it can be seen thatthe surface 21 of the boss, which in Fig. 4 is shown projecting slightlyinto the recess 7, extends slightly beyond the edge 22 of the opening 5after the shelf support has been rotated to the position shown in Fig.5. This is indicated by the dotted line at 21 in Fig. 5. The edges 22,therefore, cut slightly into the surface 21 of the boss and assist ineffecting tight engagement of the support with the wall 1. In the formshown, the boss is of elliptical cross-section, but it will be apparentthat any other non-circular cross-section whereby the longer dimensionis shifted from a position in line with the recesses 7 to a directiontransverse thereto could be employed.

A second feature facilitating tight engagement of the support with thewall 1 in the assembled position is a tapered cross-sectionalconstruction of the lips 12, best illustrated in Fig. 1. As there shown,the lips 12 are of tapered cross-section in a circumferential direction.This tapered cross-section provides a face 23 of each lip which ispositioned at a slight angle relative to the face of the shoulder 8.This provides a circumferentially tapering passage 24 between the face23 and the shoulder 8. This passage 24 flares in a directioncorresponding to the direction of rotation of the shelf support duringassembly (as indicated by the arrow in Fig. 1) so that a flaring mouth25 is first presented to the wall 1 during rotation and then a passageof decreasing size as the rotation continues. The end 26 of the passageis equal to or slightly smaller than the thickness of the wall 1 uponwhich the shelf support is mounted, so that at the end of the rotationof the shelf support the wall 1 is firmly gripped on both faces by theshelf support, the face 9 of the wall being engaged by the shoulder 8 ofthe shelf support and the face 2% of the wall being engaged by the face23 of the lip 12. In order to secure the most satisfactory engagement,two opposite extending lips 12 have been shown. However, it will be seenthat the support could be satisfactorily mounted even if only a singlelip 12 were employed. As a final feature in facilitating the firmengagement of the shelf support with the wall or other structure uponwhich it is mounted, the shelf support is arranged to include one ormore webs which are adapted to be severed or cleaved by the edges of theopening 5. Between the lips 12 and the shoulder 8 at one edge of each ofthe lips there is provided a web 27 joining the lip and the shoulder.Specifically, in the form shown, each web is located at the narrow endof the corresponding passage 24, so that the webs are cleaved at thesame time that the lips most tightly engage the wall. radially beyondthe surface 21 of the central boss 11 and is adapted to be engaged by acorresponding edge 28 of the opening 5 during the final rotationalmovement of the shelf support 4 for assembly thereof. This is bestillustrated in Figs. 4, 5, 6 and 7. As shown in Fig. 4, the web 27,during initial assembly of the shelf support, is received within therecess 7. As the shelf support is rotated in a counterclockwisedirection, as indicated by the arrows in Figs. 4 and 5, the web 27 isultimately moved into engagement with the edge 28 of the opening 5 inthe wall 1. The final rotational movement of the shelf support thencauses the edge 28 to cut into or cleave the web 27. The shelf support 4is preferably made of some material, such as a suitable plastic, whichis relatively easily cut during this final movement. This cleaving ofthe web 27 causes the wall 1 in the region of the edge 28 to be forcedinto tight engagement with the remaining material of the web 27, therebyassisting in maintaining the shelf support firmly in its final assembledposition. The relationship of the edge 28 of the opening and the Bachweb 27 extends web 27 is illustrated in another view thereof in Figs. 6and 7 to further assist in showing the web-cutting action which takesplace during this final rotational movement. In Fig. 6 the upper web 27is shown as the shelf support 4 is first assembled and before anyrotational movement thereof has taken place. In Fig. 7 the shelf supportis shown after a movement in the direction of the arrows has takenplace. In this View the web 27 shown in Fig. 6 is concealed from view.However, the diametrically opposite web 27, which connects thediametrically opposite lip l with the shoulder 3, has been brought intoview in Fig. 7 and is there shown after having been severed by thecorresponding edge of the opening 5. In Fig. 6 and 7 the face 23 of eachof the lips 12 has been purposely shown spaced from the wall 1 in orderto better illustrate the severing or cleaving effect resulting from theengagement of the web 27 with the edge of the opening 5. It will beappreciated, however, that in the preferred form this face 23 isarranged, as previously described, to engage the wall 1 toward the endof the rotation of the shelf support by virtue of the aforementionedtapering passage 24-.

In order to insure the best possible firm engagement of the shelfsupport with the wall, diametrically opposite webs 27 are preferablyemployed, one of the webs being arranged between an edge of each of thelips 12 and the shoulder 8. It will be appreciated, however, that, ifdesired, only one such web may be employed, the cleavage effected byengagement of one edge 28 of the opening 5 with the single web beingsufficient to accomplish satisfactory firm engagement of the shelfsupport and the wall.

In the foregoing description a form of shelf support has been describedwhich includes a plurality of features all directed toward securing firmengagement of the shelf support with the wall. Thus, the shelf support,in the preferred form illustrated, includes the non-circular centralboss, the tapering passages 24, and the webs 27, all contributing towardthe ultimate result. However, it will be understood that, as pointed outduring the course of this specification, one or two of these threefeatures may be omitted if the ultimate in firm engagement is notdesired or required for a particular application. Also, although thelips 12 and the recesses 7 have been shown as slightly offset, somewhatnarrower, diametrically opposite lips could be employed. Thus as shownin Fig. 8, the lips 29, corresponding to lips 12, could be terminated atthe lines indicated at 30, reducing the length of the lips. However, theform shown in Figs, 1-7 inclusive is preferred because the force exertedagainst the lips 12 in the assembled position is distributed over alarger area and a greater mechanical advantage is achieved duringassembly since a gentler slope of the faces 23 is possible with thelonger lips.

While a specific embodiment of this invention has been shown anddescribed, it is not desired that the invention be limited to theparticular construction shown and described, and it is intended by theappended claims to cover all modifications within the spirit and scopeof this invention.

What we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of theUnited States is:

1. In combination, a wall having an opening therein, said openingincluding a circular portion and at least one recess extending laterallytherefrom, a shelf support including a shoulder engaging one face ofsaid wall, a central boss of generally elliptical cross-section adjacentsaid shoulder and projecting through said circular portion of saidopening with the major dimension of said ellipticalshaped cross-sectionof said boss being greater than the diameter of said circular portion,at least one lip extending radially from said central boss and adaptedto be received within said recess, the major dimension of said generallyelliptical cross-section of said boss being located in line with saidlip, said lip being adapted to engage the other face of said wall, and acleavable web extending between said lip and said shoulder adjacent thelateral portion of said lip, said self support being rotatable afterinsertion in said opening to cause said web to be cleaved by the edge ofsaid opening whereby said Wall is firmly gripped on both sides by saidsevered web and the major dimension of said boss engages the edge ofsaid circular portion of said opening.

2. In combination, a Wall having an opening therein, said openingincluding a central circular portion and two generally diametricallyopposite slightly ofiset recesses extending laterally therefrom, a shelfsupport including a shoulder engaging one face of said wall, a centralboss of generally elliptical cross-section adjacent said shoulder andprojecting through said opening with the major dimension of saidelliptical cross-section of said boss being greater than the diameter ofsaid circular portion of said opening, two diametrically oppositeslightly offset lips extending radially from said central boss, thelarger dimension of said generally elliptical cross-section of said bossReferences Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,157,309 Swedman May 9, 1939 2,282,360 Horrocks May 12, 1942 152,312,985 Bales Mar. 2, 1943 2,459,446 Meredith Jan. 18, 1949 2,626,773Backman Jan. 27, 1953

